Goddard is intense, organised and busy. But we're not talking about Brendon

Hugh Goddard knows he wants to be an AFL footballer, and always has. But it wasn't until recently that he felt like he knew exactly what it would be like, and ask of him.

Goddard is part of the AIS-AFL Academy, in London this week on its fourth and final training camp. As part of the program he spent a week training with Essendon in January, and it was there he realised how much he still had to learn.

The 17-year-old stayed with his cousin, and got an even better sense of how organised, intense and simply busy Brendon is. He noticed how the other players went out of their way to try and help each other get better.

He did a running session with Cale Hooker, who was rehabbing an injury, and watched him pull up a little sore, head inside and work for another hour on the grinder.

Hugh Goddard is determined to meet the challenges of the AFL environment. Photo: Emma Quayle

Already, Goddard is considered one of the most dedicated, disciplined and thorough kids in this year's draft class. He has some of his cousin's traits: a want for things to be perfect, some intensity and a certain seriousness. Now he understands why he needs to be that way.

"I feel as though I'm ready to go into that AFL environment and it's what I've grown up wanting, but at this age all the footy we play is against kids our own age and so you can't really know what it's like until you get in there," Goddard said.

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"That week just reaffirmed to me that it's what I want to do with my life. You're told about professionalism and what it is and what it means, but it's not until you're there, and seeing it, and watching what the players actually do, that you fully understand it.

"I loved it. It's made me more determined than ever to make the most of this year and do everything I can to make sure I back there and get to do it again. For a lot longer."

First, he must get through this season. Goddard is in his fourth year at Melbourne Grammar, and thinks moving there as a 15-year-old helped him start to organise his own life, to make more of his time. He also feels loyal to the Geelong Falcons, and decided to stay there this year rather than move to the easier-to-get-to Sandringham Dragons.

He has plans this year - knowing it's a good draft for tall forwards, he wants to be someone who can play just as well at either end, who can adapt and change with not much notice. He'll have to do it for four teams: the Academy, his school, the Falcons and VIc Country.

It means he'll be busy, and that he'll have to look out for himself as much as coaches he wants to do the right thing by. But he likes that, and knows that in Brendon he has someone willing to answer any little question that jumps into his head.

"I'm constantly texting him if there's something I'm wondering about. If I have any questions or queries I know he's been through exactly the same thing before and he's been an awesome support for me, as someone who knows exactly what it's going to take," Goddard said.

"There's a whole lot of little things he's been able to help me with, just by me saying, 'what did you do when you were in this situation? How did you cope with this?'

"He's always said that the biggest pressure I'll feel this year is the pressure I put on myself, so he just tells me to have my high expectations but to go into games feeling relaxed and feeling like I have the ability to do what I want to do.

"People say we're pretty similar - fairly intense and pretty serious - and that's kind of in my nature, but it's important for me to relax a bit this year, considering there's so much going on. I want to do everything right and make the most of it, but I want to make sure I enjoy it too."